Many thanks to midnightandahalf for her beta skills. This story has been in the works for over two years. From time to time writing prompts in one of JE fanfiction FB groups have been the kick in the pants my muse needed to create. One of those prompts inspired this chapter.

All recognizable characters belong to JE. Your reviews and comments are greatly appreciated. Make sure to click "Follow" to receive an alert when a new chapter is added. Enjoy!

Chapter 12

A slight vibration against my leg alerts me to an incoming text. Steph. A tap on the notification opens a GIF showing the silhouette of Batman staring at the bat signal in the night sky. Three dots below the picture appear and I wait.

Disregard… i thought lula was using my phone to call an uber!

Tank called it.

Don't bother. I'm on my way. Where are you? I type. I can pull up the tracker to find her, but no point in poking the bear, especially when the bear has a couple of margaritas in her.

The trellis in hamilton twp, connie promises not to puke, might bring a fleet car just in case…Thx

Be there in 15

The three women are propped against the side of the building when I pull up. They all look a bit unsteady as they make their way to the borrowed Explorer. Not hammered, but definitely tipsy.

"Thanks for the lift, Batman," Lula says from the back seat.

"Yes, thanks," Steph adds as she slides into her seat and reaches for the seatbelt.

I acknowledge them with a nod.

"Course, we know you'd do anything for our girl, here," Lula adds.

"I'd do anything for him, too," Steph says, turning in the passenger seat and resting her face on the headrest. The Mona Lisa smile on her face is hard to interpret, but I detect a hint of mischief in her eyes.

"Anything?" Connie asks with a giggle.

"Anything," she replies softly, for my ears only.

"Even butt stuff?" Lula asks with a laugh. We all know Steph's views on that subject.

"Oh my God, Lula!" Steph gasps, glancing back over her shoulder before turning back to me. "Ignore her."

"You was just sayin' if there was anyone who could make you take a walk on the wild side, it'd be Batman here. I say go for it!" No one would ever accuse Lula of being subtle, but add alcohol and there's no telling what you'll hear.

I glance over, expecting to see mortification. Instead, Steph is studying me with a contemplative expression. My cock twitches at the thought. She was raised with antiquated and prudish ideas of how a "proper" woman should behave, but I've long believed there was a sensual, sexual being within her wanting to be free. Of course, tequila helps.

I put the car in gear and turn toward Lula's neighborhood first. Their conversation becomes background noise as I focus on the road, but I hear enough to know both Connie and Lula are a little more drunk than I had originally thought. Lula is unsteady as she makes her way to the door, and I wait to ensure she's safely inside before pointing the Explorer toward Connie's house.

Ten minutes later we're in the 'Burg and parked in front of Connie's house.

"The office will be opening late tomorrow," Connie tells Steph as she opens the back door. "I'll see ya when I see ya."

Steph responds with a mock salute. We watch Connie weave her way up the walkway and fumble with the doorknob for a few seconds before the door swings open and Mama Rosolli helps her daughter into the house.

"Where to, Babe?" I ask. I want to take her back to Haywood, but I can deal with another night in her deathtrap apartment if that is what she prefers.

"Take me home and take me to bed, Batman."

Being the good soldier I am, I immediately move to follow orders. "Yes, ma'am."

As I pull into her lot, I glance over to her usual parking spot beside the dumpster. It is too dark to tell if there are any fresh oil stains on the paved surface. She opens the door before I have a chance to move around the car, so I place a steading hand on her back as we move toward the door.

"When it comes to margaritas, I can't keep up with Lula and Connie," she tells me as she carefully makes her way across the parking lot. It's late and only a few windows in her apartment building have a light shining behind them. The yellowish light from the sodium vapor street lamps at each end of the parking lot do little to dispel the darkness.

Habit has me scanning our surroundings while listening for any noise that would convey a threat in the gloom. I move us as quickly as possible into the lighted lobby.

"No casual stroll from the car for you, huh," she says with a chuckle.

"No point in making it easy on someone," I tell her. She's come into contact with enough of my enemies to know I'm not exaggerating.

Out of deference to her more than slightly inebriated state and her high heels, I guide her toward the elevator for the short ride to the second floor. I hear the thud of those heels hitting the floor in the living room as I clear her small apartment. She's returning from the kitchen with two bottles of water as I walk back out of the bedroom.

Nodding my thanks, I take a sip. She downs half her bottle and uses the back of her hand to wipe her mouth. She bites at her lower lip. Obviously, there is something on her mind. I wait her out. She can't stay silent for long.

She clears her throat and takes another drink of water. Nervous. This should be interesting.

"Um, about what Lula said in the car…"

I raise an eyebrow in question, knowing it irks her that she can't do the same. "Did you want to try something new tonight?" I ask, baiting her. I know the only way she would ever move that far outside of her comfort zone would be in the heat of the moment. No thinking, just sensation and pleasure.

A pink hue creeps across her cheeks but she looks me square in the eye as she responds, "I don't think I'm ready to say let's do it tonight, but I want you to know that I trust you completely. And, um, I trust that you would never do, um, never push me to do, like, something I didn't want to do. And if you want to, um, let's say, expand my, um, horizons, I'm not opposed to the idea."

This stops the hand that is lifting the water bottle to my mouth. I'm not sure how to respond to what she is telling me. Yes, I know she trusts me to look out for her. This feels like something so much more. That she is willing to put this kind of trust in me is humbling. And frightening. If she knew the beast within me, she'd run screaming for the hills. The warning falls from my lips without thought.

"Babe, be careful what you say. You know I'm an opportunist, but you don't really know who I am. The kinds of things I've seen and done. What I'm capable of."

"What you've done, what you've had to do, that's not who you are. You are a loving, caring man of honor who protects the ones he loves and, sometimes, those he's never met. And I know you're capable of doing what is necessary, but I don't believe for one second you would purposefully hurt an innocent. What you've done in the past is just one chapter in your life. It's not your whole story," Steph says.

"It's not that simple." My voice sounds strained as I speak around the lump that has formed in my throat. That lump might be my heart.

Her soft hand is warm as she lays it against my cheek and responds, "It is to me."